Climate Change and the Rim Fire

Rim Fire, Tuolumne County

Building off of yesterday's post on drought and water, a post on the fire that has captured the Nation's attention seems appropriate. But before I dive into what's happening with the Rim Fire, check out this 90 second overview from the folks at Climate Desk on why 2013 has been such a busy fire season:

Now that you're armed with a little background...the Rim Fire is a brush fueled fire started just outside of Yosemite National Park, and over the course of its 8 day life it has grown into the 7th largest in CA history having burnt 179,481 acres. One of the factors contributing to the conditions that are currently allowing the Rim Fire to thrive is the fact that last winter was among the driest on record for California creating the tinderbox conditions that provide a fertile environment for fire to spread. The fire is only 20% contained and its growth is threatening not only a key reservoir for San Francisco but also a power station that provides power to many in the bay area. The map below (courtesy of CNN.com) illustrates the rapid spreading and the serious threat it poses to the Hetch Hetchy reservoir which supplies roughly 2.6 Bay Area residents with water.

With costs approaching $20 million in the fight against this raging inferno, the fact that it's threatening infrastructure a major metropolitan area relies on, and it looks this serious from space, should be a wake up call to all of us that something is seriously wrong. This is not the first time this year that fires have posed a significant risk to life and property and if there are measures we can take, then we should start today.

Overview map of the fires currently burning in the US:

Courtesy of the US Forest Service

Fire on the Mountain

Since the 19 wildland firefighters lost their lives fighting the Yarnell Hill blaze in Arizona, the internet has lit up with opinions on where failures may have occurred and how to fix the current state of fire / land management in the US.

Fire is something I know little about: the tactics employed to fight it, the science behind burn rates of certain types of fuel, or the environmental factors that create the tinderboxes that many states seem to be, so I won't pretend to be an expert.

What I do know is that this tragedy has sparked a National debate spurred by President Obama's remarks that "...the Arizona Firefighter deaths shows a need to reassess wildland fire management policy."

I'm a big believer in looking at and learning from past experience, and in January of this year Tasmania experienced a firestorm that may help inform the course of the current conversation around the Fire Management debate. The Guardian created a compelling multi-media story around one families escape from danger and how the blurring of the wildland urban interface is working to put more people at risk.

If a re-examination of fire / land management policies in the US are about to be undertaken, I hope the lessons learned from communities around the world who have gone through this can help shape the conversation.

The "Firestorm" link below will take you to the Guardian piece:

Firestorm - The Guardian UK

The Holmes, taking cover under their doc in Dunally, Tasmania